Our View

Although school has already been out for a month, summer officially starts today, June 20.
With that in mind, it’s time to remind everyone – children and adults alike – to put safety first this summer.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), summer is when you are most likely to be injured, with emergency room visits spiking by about 20 percent during June, July and August.

The University of South Carolina baseball team, in recent seasons, has seemingly become a fixture in Omaha, Neb., for the College World Series.
The Gamecocks are bidding for their third straight national crown after winning in 2010 and 2011.
Getting there is sweet, but it’s not a given.
When you’re the king of the hill, or in baseball terms, the man on the mound, it gets tougher each time. Along with that shining national championship trophy at the end of the season comes a major target on the team’s back for the following campaign.

Just when Lancaster County residents thought the specter of
trash mountains was laid to rest, at least for awhile, another reared its head in the middle of Indian Land.
A growing mountain of trash at Pressley’s Recycling Center Inc., was discovered in late October, after a very public battle over the proposed “Project December” landfill in southern Lancaster County and the fear that the Foxhole construction and demolition debris landfill just north of the state line would begin accepting household waste last year.

On Tuesday, June 12, registered voters across the state will be able to exercise one of the most precious privileges democracy grants us – the opportunity to determine who will represent them in their government.
In Lancaster County, there are only two races on the ballot – Republicans vying for the Lancaster County Council District 3 seat and the newly created District 7 seat in Indian Land.

You have to be impressed with Buford High School’s Anthony Stephens’ determination.
After a pair of sixth-place finishes in the Class AA state meet as a BHS sophomore and junior, Stephens wanted to do better.
He did, as best as he could have for at the recent Class AA state track meet in Pontiac.
Stephens posted a personal-best 48.35 to win the state title in the 400-meter run during the Class AA state track meet.

The Lancaster County School District Hall of Fame, in keeping with the tradition of honoring the work of past top educators, has added four deserving members with the 2012 class.
The elite four includes the late Peter Barry, Charles Clark, Mary Mackey Robertson and Walter Lee Tillman.
Each did plenty to promote education in Lancaster County and earn a special place in Lancaster County education history.

Take a good look at today’s Graduation 2012 special section. It’s full of the graduates from all four county high schools.
After their respective ceremonies today they’ll toss their mortar boards high into the air as they celebrate their graduation with the friends, family, teachers and administrators who helped them along the way.

For nearly 80 years, Small’s Food Center, has played a vital role in the Kershaw community.
The grocery store, which Curtis Small opened in 1933, is still going strong, thanks to Small’s son, Ronnie, and their family commitment to quality over the decades.
Recently, the food center was saluted for its solid place in the Kershaw area business community.
2012 marked Ronnie Small’s 50th year involved with the thriving business known for its high-quality selection of food and goods, as well as its friendly service.

In the spring of 1985, Dr. Gordon Klatt, a colorectal surgeon from Tacoma, Wash., sought to raise money for the American Cancer Society in honor of his patients.
For 24 hours, a dedicated Klatt walked around the track at Baker Stadium at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma.
Throughout the night, his friends paid $25 each to walk or run 30 minutes with him.
He walked about 83 miles and raised $27,000 to fight cancer.

The youth ball season is under way around the county.
As an annual rite of spring, many area youngsters, girls and boys from a variety of ages, will be involved with baseball and softball games from the county Panhandle to southern Lancaster County and all points in between.
It’s a new season and the optimism is high.
There will be plenty of games on the diamonds for these youngsters from now to mid-summer to be a part of this season.